About Us

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Thanks for a great Summer 2008 show St. Augustine! And special thanks to our volunteers that day: Shellie Kibbee, Shonas Kibbee, and Sandy Klinge! You all did a great job! Read some of the comments on our News & Comments page and feel free to post your own.

This event has been happening sometime every summer for the past 10 years! Hard to believe, but it's true! And we couldn't have continued this far, or grown so much, without the help and participation from all our vendors, organizers and volunteers. Many thanks to you all, and we hope you'll join us for the 2nd Annual Holiday Festival at the Pier - same bat time, same bat place! :)

How it all began...   In 1998, Marianne Campbell had had enough of regulations and high fees keeping a lot of local women artists and crafters out of shows and galleries. She decided with the help of her friend Malorie Shannon to hold a small event right in her own driveway... it was the beginning of a much-needed and welcome tradition.

Now over 60 vendors participate each year and we added the first ever Holiday Festival in December 2007. Malorie took over for Marianne a few years ago, and wants to make sure this event continues to support and encourage women artists of all skill levels. Due to illness, she recently passed the event coordination on to LaDonna Eastman.

LaDonna has been involved since summer of 2006 with helping to spread the word about the festival and setting up the website. She says, "I'm really excited to be part of this growing project. The holiday arts & crafts festival on December 9th was a great success! We now offer two venues each year for local women artists and crafters. I hope it keeps growing!"

This venue is for emerging women artists and crafters who might not otherwise exhibit their work due to strict regulations, exorbitant fees, travel expenses, and/or sometimes, just a lack of confidence in their work. Many amateur artists started out at this show and are now professional artists participating in trade shows across the nation, and making a living from what they love.